The consultation, led by the Ministry of Defence and the Home Office, will cover a range of issues including national security, working with other countries, exports, small and medium-sized enterprises, and cyber security.

This is the first time these issues have been considered together from both defence and security perspectives.

The Green Paper ‘Equipment, Support, and Technology for UK Defence and Security: A Consultation Paper’ provides details of the consultation, which will last for three months commencing in the New Year.

Minister for Defence, Equipment, Support and Technology, Peter Luff, said:

To ensure our Armed Forces have the equipment and support they need, industry requires as much clarity as possible to plan its investment in research and production.

The Strategic Defence and Security Review made clear that this consultation is an opportunity for industry and the public to help us shape how we deliver some of the vital components of our national security.

The Minister for Security, The Right Honourable The Baroness Neville-Jones, said:

As we said in the Strategic Defence and Security Review, Government needs to be smarter in the way that we meet the challenges to national security. Defence and security go hand in hand in many areas, which is why we are increasingly joining efforts to deliver solutions.

The Green Paper will lead to a White Paper setting out the Government’s approach to industry and technology policy in the defence and security domains over the next five years which will be published in 2011.